Students reviews

We are passionate! Passionate about our programs, the Greek Language, the Greek culture, food, nature, music… but most of all, about you, our students and guests!

Your feedback helps us to become (even) better in the future and adapt our programs to your needs. Feel free to send your remarks, comments or observations by email(info@omilo.com) or to the Omilo Facebook page.

For those who have a gmail email account, it is also possible to write your review on Google. Click below and add your review or read what other students write.

Do not just take it from us, read here below what our students from different countries write. Their feedback and comments were sent to us by email.

Dear Maya ,Dimitri, Terpsi, Marina and Konstantine ,

thanks again for the photo Album of our February course. It had been a very intense and enjoyable week with lots of new impressions. Looking at the pictures here in incredibly cold Frankfurt, it makes me feel warm and happy and brings back all those beautiful memories which I already “collected” while staying with you in my so beloved Athens.

I know you like to get “feedback”, and if you want me to use a scale from 1-10, then you would get a 10+++++ without ending.
You are indeed not only meeting my expectations, but always exceeding them. And those are not only “nice words” and I will tell you why…

It starts with the uncomplicated and always reliable organisation of the courses (thanks to Maya and Nina), followed by your letters full of information about the courses and the City of Athens including public transport, benefits and events, continues with your well chosen proposals for discovering the cultural Highlights of Athens (musicals, theatre, Museums etc.) and the “legendary” night walks with Maya and Dimitris, where you are always paying attention to letting us get some new impressions and taking care for special interests (f.e. the art walk, new influences in Greek cooking etc.) and ends up with staying in touch with us in a very familiarly manner by distributing the photo album, personal greetings and your wonderful Newsletter.

But of course, what really matters for students who want to learn Greek, is the quality of the lessons which are held by your teachers. In my opinion you provide the perfect mixture of teaching skills which are required to keep a student ambitious in learning your beautiful but difficult language. Terpsi, your calm and confident way of teaching spends a lot of energy and makes me feel safe and optimisic that one day I will make it. Konstantine, your smooth and personally adressing way of teaching and your strength in explaining Greek grammar in a simple way, opens my mind even for the “heavy stuff”. And last, but not least, Marina, your very challenging way of teaching (and you know it!!!) is the perfect and necessary counterpart, which I need to “stay on the ground” and unveal my deficits. In my opinion, all those teaching skills – creating confidence, introduce to the essentials and challenge, are the most promising “ingredients” to learn a foreign language. None of them must be missed. So thanks to all of you! And not to forget, that we are always having a lot of fun during the lessons, which should not be underestimated when talking about keeping motivation on a high level!

So, what could I say more than thanks so much to the whole team! You won’t get rid of me, even if you would like to (hopefully not ;)). And of course, whenever someone will need the perfect adress for learning Greek, I will write down: Omilo, Panagi Tsaldari, Marousi, Athens!!!

While writing, again this very special Athens Nostalgia is catching me up….Wish I could be there…So long, my best wishes and greetings from cold Frankfurt.

Stefania, Germany
Athens, Intensive Course, February 2018

Dear Maya and Dimitris,

I wanted to let you know that last year’s program was excellent. You added so many extra activities. You built a school, but after thinking about it, you created a family.
You, the teachers and the staff are caring and thoughtful. Compliments to everyone! Of course I would like to attend a summer program this year again.

Θα τα πούμε,

Patrick, USASyros, Intensive Course, September 2017

Dear Omilo-team,

Thank you very much for the wonderful days I have spent in Syros. Thank you for helping me to start to learn a language I once thought I would never be able to speak and understand. Thank you Konstandinos and Terpsi for your classes, your intelligent lesson planning, your involvement, your gentle kindness, your perceptiveness, and for making me enjoy learning from the start. Thank you Maya for your attention, your advice, and perfect organization. Thank you Dimitris for your warm welcome into Greece, for your care for every aspect of our stay in Syros, and for the activities you coordinated and run. Thank you Marina for being there, even for those who were not your students-like me, for your encouragement and your smile. Thank you all for guiding me through this journey into your beautiful language. I will not forget the light of the Cyclades, the sea at all times, the bougainvillea flowers, the pleasant conversations, the walks and the people I met in and outside class, but what I most value above everything else is the excellent teaching I received and what I have learnt these days with you.

I hope to see you again.

All the best,

Eulàlia , SpainSyros, Intensive Course, July 2017

Καλημέρα,

In addition to my responses to your student survey, I want to say I have particularly appreciated the contents of the course, the approach which is given to it, as well as the tools used during the course.
I have also appreciated the kindness, the enthusiasm, and the strong involvement of each member of the OMILO’s team.

Ευχαριστώ πολύ!

Jean-Louis, FranceSyros, Intensive Course, July 2017

So glad I inadvertently stumbled upon ‘Omilo’ while scouring the Internet for a Modern Greek course in the Los Angeles area! Without hesitation, I immediately inquired if space were available for the course I was interested in, then happily I secured a flight to Athens!

Fast forward, I enrolled in a two-week spring session in Nafplion. I was instantaneously and thoroughly impressed with the program, the professionalism, as well as the high caliber of instruction. To illustrate how pleased I was, two years later I enrolled in yet another course at the same location!

All of the instructors are native-speakers, enthusiastic, engaging, have energetic personalities, and are authentic and sincere in their interaction with all students. Their thoughtful method of instruction, coupled with small classes, speak volumes about how they genuinely care that all students learn. Each lesson is strategically geared for the level of the class, the delivery is at a comfortable pace, and the instructors instinctively and ongoingly check for understanding before moving on.

Additionally, the entire Omilo staff is warm, super friendly, and ‘top-notch’! Much attention is given to ensuring everyone is comfortable and enjoying his/her experience.

Many other optional fun and educational activities are included which immensely add to the comradery and enjoyment of learning Greek in Greece!

If it weren’t for the fact I live on another continent, I would happily be in attendance of more Omilo courses!

Joy, USANafplion, Intensive Course, April 2017

Kalimera Maya and Nina,

Thank you for the link to the photo album of my course in Athens in May; they are a pleasant memory of a very nice week. I liked the course very much; at first, I was wondering how it would be having lessons all by myself but in fact, I had a great time thanks to Terpsi and Dimitri; I discovered that it was easier for me to speak than I thought and as I was compelled to use the greek language all the time during the lessons, it helped me a lot; last but not least, we had fun together. I also enjoyed all the visits and activities in the afternoons (the Dora-Stratou theater, the Narchos- foundation, the very nice walk to the Philopapous hill, the songs , quite a lot in a week !) and of course, the very friendly atmosphere of the school.

This was the first time I’d ever done a course like this- and it was amazing – thank you Omilo team. I enjoyed having two teachers in a four hour session teaching different things. The use of cards, games, and structured tables for the verbs were really helpful. The two weeks course has made me feel so much more confident to speak – it’s still a struggle but there has been an a huge improvement. I met great people, discovered another gorgeous place in Greece in Agios Nikitas, Lefkada and of course my Greek has really improved.

Thank you for making us feel so special and for organising our class and out of class activities – you work really hard and with good hearts – and I will be back!!!

Anita, UKLefkada, Intensive Course, June 2017

Dear Μάγια, Δημήτρη, Μαρίνα, Τέρψη και Κωστα

..όλα είναι καλά ..

Have been walking in Spain after the Greek course.. My head is an alphabet soup of Greek, Spanish and French.. When I want to say ‘yes’ in Spanish out pops ‘ναι’ and vice versa!

I loved your classes and wished we had signed up for two weeks rather than one.. Perhaps next time?! I sincerely hope there will be a next time.

I commend you all for your generosity and intelligence in teaching your beautiful language to us with such genuine warmth, energy and enthusiasm.

I can say that I felt very excited to be at Omilo, and very happy that we had chosen your school amongst all the others when Irini and I were sitting at my kitchen table in Brisbane, plotting to go to Greece.. You are all ΚΑΤΑΠΛΙΚΤΙΚΙ!!! If I lived in Athens I would definitely be a regular!

Jennifer, AustraliaAthens, Intensive Course, May 2017

Dear Omilo Team,

I am writing to thank you all for such an excellent Greek Language Course. It was enjoyable, interesting, engaging, informative and worthwhile! I will recommend Omilo to all my Greek-speaking English friends, and hope to return sometime for another course in Athens.

Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ,

Frances, UKAthens, Intensive Course, May 2017

Καλημἑρα

I thoroughly enjoyed the course in Nafplion and feel that the Omilo team do a good job and are very proficient and professional. I was only exposed to the beginners course which I requested . I grew up in Greek family life where Greek was spoken. My parents immigrated from Greece. I attended a community Greek school as a child which was taught by one of the Greek community elders. At age 10 years we moved to another city and Greek was seldom spoken, consequently I forgot much of the Greek I knew. For the past two years I have attended a Greek class given by the local Greek church but only 2 hours a week.

I learned more Greek in the one week class in Nafplion than I have in 2 Years at my local Greek Church. This is one of the reasons I am very motivated to try to continue. to study Greek through Omilo.

I have enjoyed your Newsletter and entries on FaceBook.

I am looking forward to attending one of the fall course after Skype lessons.

Regards,

Nick, USANafplion, Intensive course, April 2017

Dear Omilo team,

I want to thank Terpsi and Constantinos for the excellent course they
provided for me last week. Omilo is a good school and I would
recommend the school to anyone who wishes to learn Greek. You are true
professionals and it was a pleasure to work with you. I look forward
to coming back sometime for more Greek study.

Thanks.

Tony, USAAthens, Private lessons, January 2017

Dear Omilo team,

Just a short mail to confirm my presence for the second week of the August course in Syros.
I also wanted to share with the teaching team a little good piece of news in this weird months Europe is going through… I sat and passed the official B2 exam for the Greek language last May! Special thanks to Marina, Kostantinos, Dimitri, Terpsi and Kostas who have all been my teachers in these past 3 years and fully contributed to this result!!!
Happy to see you all very soon and to start with you my trip to C1:)

Dear Dimitri,
Last week Petra and I returned home safely from Nafplion. We had a great time, even though I got ill. Both of us really enjoyed the Greek lessons. We think that you and your staff are very, very good teachers.

It was a pity of course, that I had pneumonia and bronchitis, but I was lucky to find a good doctor very quickly, with your help. Because of the medicine he gave me, my temperature lowered within a day and the coughing got less, so I was able to come to school and join most of the classes. Despite my illness we have been able, I think, to enjoy the highlights of Greek Easter: Epitaphios, dinner in the Old Tavern, Anastasi and Easter lunch in Fougaro. We’d like to thank you for organizing everything so well!
And of course I’d like to thank you for the present you gave me on Tuesday, the day we left. In the plane I had the chance to take a good look at everything that was in the bag and I was pleasantly surprised! Nafplion is absolutely one of the most beautiful cities in Greece, with a memorable history. I’ll be reading the booklet on Kapodistrias soon and I’m planning to frame the picture and give it a nice place in my study. I’m honoured, I really am!

Thank you again, also on behalf of Petra, for the lessons, for organizing not only the course, but also all the other activities and, of course, your great gift!

Give our love to Maya,

Warm regards,

Richard and Petra, The NetherlandsNafplion intensive course, 2016

Dear Maya,

Thank you for your email with the link to the facebook photo-album. I just wanted to thank you for the two weeks in Nafplio, I had a great time! The whole experience was very enriching: To be in Greece during the Easter holidays, to meet and exchange with many interesting people from different countries and different horizons and the OUTSTANDING quality of the lessons. Not only did you manage to make us talk with the vocabulary and grammar each of us possesses, you also made us progress in great strides and we learned a lot more more about Greek mentality, culture and the difficulties of life today in Greece.

Please feel free to publish this comment on your website, it comes from the heart. I am also sure to see you again, because I will certainly come again next year. I would have loved to come to Syros in September, but I already have other ..Please say hello from me to all the teachers with a big THANK YOU!

Special thanks for giving us the whole four lessons, though being only the two of us!!
Special thanks to Maya for the most interesting walk in the city, Ι would not have found the lots of Street-Art walking just by my own, ήμουν στο Γάζι δεύτερη φορά, μέσα αυτή την φορά!
Special thanks to Δημήτρη for all the most profound and funny συσήτησεις!
Special thanks to Μαρίνα, for always introducing some poem – δύσκολο να καταλάβω το ολόκληρο νόημα των ελληνικών ποιημάτων μόνη μου – και αγαπάω τη ποίηση!
Τι να σας πω; Ήμουν στο αυθεντικό Μαραθώνιο στην αυθεντική Αθήνα στο αυθεντικό Παναθηναικό Στάδιο! Εντυπωσιάστηκα!! Συγκινήθηκα!!! So – that´s some very short ευχαριστώ.

Corina , The NetherlandsAthens intensive New Year course, December 2015

Dear Omilo team,

I LOVED the Andros course!–it really exceeded my expectations. The town was wonderfully lively, but nice and small–and the views from the course location and from the hotel Blue Dolphin where we were staying were gorgeous. So yes, I think this is an excellent location for Omilo courses. I was very happy with the teaching and with what I learned, as well as with the activities. Unfortunately we didn’t make it to the other side of the island to see Chora as we were so happy (and busy) in Batsi! We might have done so had we been on Andros longer.

I continue now my lessons at home and maybe I will even be able to do some work with Φύγαμε για ελληνικά, which you so kindly gave me in August.

I just want to thank you all for a lovely week, both the school, and the walks in Athens. Eating together in the taverns, and not to forget the Greek concert. I shall never forget it. I hope to be back next year. I dont know yet when. Maybe one of your courses on the islands.

Greetings to all,

Torun, NorwayAthens intensive course, 2014

Αγαπημένoi δάσκαλοι,

Ευχαριστώ για τα υπέροχα μαθηματα στην Σγρο τον Ιούλιο. As usual it was exceptional and, once again, I was so impressed with how you manage to look after everyone and bring them together like a family and make sure everyone has a great time. I know this is a lot of hard work but you all do it so well. Could you please send me one of the books, φύγαμε για Ελληνικά. I am also ready to start my Skype lessons , so could you please let me know what times are suitable for the teachers.

Once again, thank you and all the Omilo team for the great and interesting Modern Greek course we received in the beautiful island of Syros. No doubt: I look forward to come back next September.
See attached the nice picture of the last day during the “graduation ceremony”. Let’s see how many Colombian students I will be able to bring to Omilo courses. I will recommend you as real professionals. No doubt about it.

Thanks again, and please send my regards to Marina, to Terpsi, to Konstantinos, and to Kostas.

Andrés, ColombiaSyros intensive course, 2014

Kalimera sas to everyone in Omilo,

A belated huge thank you to everyone for making the Syros September course so enjoyable and I am really looking forward to going back next September :-))

A coffee “frappé” under the shining sun in Greece: €1.50. A complete dinner with Greek white wine: €15. A cocktail seeing the Acropole from a roof garden: €7. A course at OMILO – Learning Greek in Greece: PRICELESS!

If you want to see and learn something new, have a lot of fun and make new friends with the best teachers I’ve ever know. Don’t think it twice, go to Omilo!! Thxs to all of you for the amazing time we had together! See you soon, guys!

What can I say. only nice words come to my mind when I think of the classes, level of teaching, activities, students, teachers and of course Maya, and the great atmosphere in general. In March I visited Athens and had my first experience with Omilo. This summer I went to Andros and Syros and followed classes for three weeks. I watched people come and go and even felt like a small part of the Omilo team, it’s like family. Both Andros and Syros were perfect but I fell in love with Syros. The people, the food and the great offer of cultural activities in Ermoupoli.

From the first day I came back home I was thinking about returning to Greece and to Omilo. So for the third time this year I will! I look forward to seeing you all again in Athens this fall, as well as some of the other Omilo-students I met this year who will be there too.

Hallo Omilo,
Please put my e-mailaddress on the list, I would love to hear from other people from my course! I had a great time on the Lefkada course! I think it was a great succes, also the location and hotel Agatha. Many greetings, tot ziens!

I’d really like to thank you for the great time I had in Syros this year. I enjoyed the professional teaching, the perfect organization, the great company and the very friendly hospitality of all! Marina, Konstantinos and Dimitris, you were great teachers, Maya I liked dancing with you! I hope to have the chance to come back again next year.

All the best and greetings from Engelberg,

Regula, Switzerland
Lefkada intensive course, June 2013

Dear all at Omilo,

Really, I had intended to write this in Greek, but….
Anyway: Ευχαριστώ, Ευχαριστώ πολύ for everything! For the excellent teaching and the infinitely patient instructors, for the individualized teaching and the warm atmosphere…
And THIS time I firmly intend to study some Greek every day, and to try to findsomeone for conversation practice.

Maya, a very special thanks to you for arranging accommodation. The room was nice and warm, staff very friendly and helpful, and the location was so practical.

Otherwise I am very distressed at the latest Greece/EU news… my heart bleeds for all the innocent people who will be affected.

I would very much like to leave feedback for you, so here is what my impressions where:
What most impressed me was your ability to combine absolute professionalism with
thesimple warmth of a “family feel”. quite magic and rare actually.
About my two beautiful teachers I can say that they of course know the subject they
are teaching, but have also a talent for explaining and paedagogic which blew my
mind and helped me understand so much in just a week.
On top of this amazing experience, the dancing lessons was a blessing and such a
great way to dive into the culture with you whole heart and feet !
thank you thank you thank you !

Although I learnt lots of Greek in Andros, I’m writing this mail in English
as it’s still much quicker for me to communicate in and less complicated as I don’t have the Greek alphabet available on my laptop (as yet).
I’d just like to thank you and your team for a wonderful week in Andros. I ‘ve really profited enormously from Dora and Kostas’ excellent teaching skills. They were really very patient and competent in dealing with my many weaknesses. As promised, the whole week was systematically developed – just what I had wanted and indeed needed. I now feel so much more confident when speaking and am a lot more fluent than previously. Indeed, in the meantime I’ve received numerous compliments from friends on Tinos and Ikaria on how much my Greek has improved. This gives me great satisfaction. I’d also like to mention that the course book used was very good and I’ll continue to work through it with my Greek teacher in Basel after the holidays. I was delighted to have met you too on Andros. Now I can put a face to the Maya I’m writing to!
I’m sure I’ll do further courses with Omilo in the future and am happy to recommend it to any friends/colleagues looking for a good school for Greek.
Many thanks once again for everything. You now have one more very satisfied client to add to your records of success. I hope you have a great summer.

Very best wishes,

Kathleen, Ireland
Andros Intensive course, 2011

Hi Dimitri & Maya and Omilo-team,

Thank you all again so much for a wonderful program.
Dimitri – I trust you are rested after your programs – you deserve a medal for dealing with all of us different clients in such a wonderful way.

Many kind regards,

Katia, Australia
Syros Intensive course, 2011

Hi Omilo-team!

I am back in my cold and wet Canada. Time flies! I am very happy with this whole Greek experience on the island of Syros, it has been really wonderful, I’m so lucky! Also wanted to let you know that I really enjoyed the movie “politiki kouzina”. This is what I call a real “feel-good” movie! So again, thank you very much for the birthday-gift.

Thank you so much for an experience of a lifetime! It worked out so great for me to be able to include my family and have my children take lessons also. The two of you are exceptional people and really special. It has been an honour to have met you. Thank you for your knowledge and patience.

Efcharisto yia ola masi stin Athina. Itan thavmasia!!
Sorry for the greeklish- but I dont have a Greek keyboard at work.
It was great to meet the students from different countries, and of course also the teachers. The lessons were a great mix of talking and grammar. I learned a lot of new useful words and verbs.

Also the combination of teaching and social activities was great. I will definitely come back.

Back at home I would like to thank you for the nice week spent with you, even if I missed some lessons: I enjoyed very much the very good teachers and the nice schoolmates,
as well as the wonderful landscape of Azolimnos.

Lessons by Omilo are a happy mixing of hard work (grammar, syntax, verbs) and listening and conversation. The teachers are very professional and very patient.

The whole team of Omilo is dedicated to the students, also by organizing events after the lessons.
Good feeling between the summates also in the free time.

It is nice to know and to spend vacations with people of different countries and different ages that have the same interests and the same passion: Greece.

I wish to everybody of you good autumn and good winter and hope to see you again in the next year.

Best regards,

Luisa, Italy Syros, intensive course, August 2017

Καλημέρα,

Happy to provide feedback on the course, although I found everything to be excellent! How do you improve on that? I’ll say this:

From the day we found the Omilo website and made enquiries, the contact with Omilo was clear and informative. A warm welcome from the Omilo team greeted us on day one, when we met our fellow Greek students and found we were around 14 in all and from many different locations, all united by the common interest in Greek language and culture. After a test we were out into classes. Such a feast of learning for me, but my Greek was so rusty! I needed to go back to the basics. Here is where I really came to see what a wonderful school this is. I quickly realised that the level was beyond me. A quick discussion with Δημήτρης and all was settled. I changed classes and found myself with Kostas and Marina. No matter what the level however, I could not have been happier. The teachers are highly professional and competent, blending their pedagogic excellence with warmth and friendliness. Teachers and students mixed comfortably and I feel I’ve made new friends The extra curricular activities which I went to were both informative and fun.

My only regret is that Australia is so far away, as I would be turning up at Omilo at least once a year if I could.

Very impressed I was by the personal touch of the team, you know how to get a good impression of the level of each student before the start/kick off, and you are able to fit in the lessons accordingly.

We had a lot of fun but also we learned a lot, me and my student companian, as we were in a small group of only two persons, it felt like private lessons..

Terpsi and Dimitris were able to step down to our beginners-level, but still teaching Greek together with a lot of humor and amusement. Both have this ‘big smile’ while trying to learn us something, it’s really bazzling how they do it!

This is the strong point of Omilo, the personal touch and fun in combination with many serious moments to learn the Greek language and the Greek ways!

Do not change this perfect style..

Ta leme (Next year??)

Victor, The NetherlandsAthens, intensive course, May 2017

Dear Maya,

We loved Omilo’s philosophy, its program structure, and its dedicated instructors and staff.

No one can learn a language in 2 weeks; but it is certainly possible to acquire an appreciation for one’s status in that process and to understand the next steps necessary to make progressive advances. Omilo is expert in providing that training, certainly in the Beginner and Intermediate classes that my wife and I were enrolled in.

Not only would we recommend Omilo to others, but we already have!

All the best,

Jack & Arlene, USALefkada, intensive course, June 2017

Καλησπέρα to all the Omilo team

It all seems such a long way from our time in Athens and I have been fretting since we left your wonderful country. I will dream of going back to do another course with you. It’s one of the best decisions Jenny and I have ever made and I enjoyed every minute of the experience. I thank you all for the learning, your dedication and warmth, for the delight of being with you. If I can find a way of repeating the experience, I most certainly will.

Many, many thanks to you all.

Irene, AustraliaAthens, intensive course, May 2017

Dear Maya and Dimitris,

Gerry and I really enjoyed our time in Nafplio with you, taking part in Greek Easter celebrations and working on our Greek language. We were both very happy with our classes and our teachers. And Nafplio is one of our favourite towns in Greece; it makes an ideal base for your Easter course.

As we said in Nafplio, we would both like to attend your 2-week September course in Syros as well.

Best regards,

Val & Gerry, France-UKNafplion, intensive course, April 2017

Dear Maya, Dear Dimitri,

I wanted to thank you very much for the March course. I was very interested to discover “The School” in Athens at last after having heard such a lot about it. I enjoyed very much the concerts, the walks and the introduction to all aspects of the life in Athens you gave us with such enthusiasm, not to talk of all the opportunities to eat wonderful Greek food together.
The courses with Marina and Terpsi were also very enjoyable and I appreciated once more the very friendly atmosphere of the school.
Will be back in the May course

I always watch with interest the Omilo Facebook feed, and lately I’ve been acutely missing Greece — last night I dreamed of being in Syros again, and today has left me feeling disappointed I’m not there to enjoy my adopted second land. Please pass along a warm hello to the Omilo team; I’m really happy that I’ve had contact with all the Omilo staff, and that there’s no one I would be disappointed with to have as an instructor again.

I hope to come next year for two weeks. I’ve even found some sheet music for some dance music, and have begun wading into Greek folk music on mandolin and fiddle. It is a pale reflection of the wonderful live music at Petro’s tavern in Azolimnos.

Have a wonderful summer. I’m jealous of the island life you get to enjoy each summer.

Cheers

David, CanadaSyros intensive course, July 2015

Καλημέρα Omilo, and Τέρψη και Κωνσταντίνος!

Thank you all for an inspiring course. “Intensive” doesn’t even come close to describing how hard you worked us in the beginner course. I left Syros today and have arrived in Milos to join my Danish kayak club. This is our 8th year on the water In Greece, and now for the first time, I can actually communicate. I am really amazed at how much I have learned, and that it seems to be sticking!

For the first time I’ve been able to carry on a pretty good conversation with the husband of Φλώπα, our “Pension mother” here, who speaks absolutely only Greek.

And smiling from ear to ear he is determined that I pronounce everything right, so my lessons are going to continue – though on a more practical, hands-on level here. And when I asked Φλώρα “Πού είναι η Μαρία;” she told me she had finished cleaning for today (in Greek), but a little while later Μαρία appeared at my door and gave me a big welcome. We too are communicating now. Thank you so much! You have helped me open a rewarding door!

Ευχαθριστώ! Κάρολ, από την Δανία

P.S. Wish I could have written all of this in Greek, but maybe after next year …
Carol, Denmark, Syros course – August 2015

Carol, DenmarkSyros intensive course, August 2015

Kalimera!

many many thanks for giving us such a wonderful time. Maya and Terpsi you even got us started on greek dancing ! quite an achievement!

We loved the island of Syros and all its culture and our teachers and fellow pupils.
Very best wishes and kalo himona to all at the school

unfortunately my Greek isn’t good enough yet to allow me to express my gratitude for the Omilo course I attended in Syros in September. My knowledge has improved indeed and I can see it now that I’ve just begun my 2nd year here in Italy. Your way of teaching while letting your students feel comfortable and welcome is a great help in learning and I believe it depends mostly on your being Greek: that makes the difference! I hope to follow another course in Athens next Spring and meet again all of you.

Here an email to tell you that I loved the course and I think Omilo goes a very long way trying to accommodate individual people’s needs. The Omilo teachers always make sure that every person gets a turn in class, etc. To people who would like more individual tuition and ‘undivided attention’, I strongly recommend skype classes in between group courses. I benefit very much from the skype classes as 1) you set the time which is convenient for you 2)you cannot skip the class or day dream and 3) you can work on filling your individual gaps. I then enjoyed the group courses in Greece and hearing other people all the more, even when they struggled sometimes, as they bring in different vocabulary and broaden the range of topics.

Once more I wanted to thank you for the great Greek Easter course. I wish I could have stayed for the two weeks because I have the impression that I have learned more during these six days than in the previous six months.
The quality of the lessons themselves was outstanding but I do really appreciate the effort you put to organize the “afternoon activities”. During these activities one gets to learn a lot about Greek culture and traditions while at the same time having the opportunity the practice the Greek language with the teachers.
looking forward to seeing you again in other courses!

All the best and my regards to all the team,

Daniel, Spain
Nafplion intensive course, 2014

Kalispera all teachers at Omilo!

Thanks for a great week on Syros from August 31 to September 7. Marina, you were a wonderful teacher who opened my eyes to the meaning behind the songs I sing. Eucharisto poli!

PS. I also enjoyed the cultural evenings with Dimitri’s lecture on the Greek crisis and Terpsi’s introduction to modern Greek. Very informative!

Gail, Sweden
Syros intensive course, 2014

Hello Maya,

for some reason I didn´t really say goodbye to you before you left. I was not aware of the fact that you were leaving before the course ended.

Anyway, this is a good reason to write a few words to you.
I enjoyed my time with Omilo very much (as usual), even more so because I was happy to be in the advanced course where, in spite of my lack of vocabulary, I had a great time and learned a lot! And what is more important: the classes gave me a lot of motivation to continue with my classes here in Germany and work on my vocabulary until next time. There was an excellent atmosphere in our group and I think Dimitris and Marina are absolutely perfect teachers who know exactly how to get the best out of every single student. That is a capacity you do not find very often!

Travelling around on the Peloponnesε was also a very special experience. I got a totally different picture of Greece compared to the one I had from the islands I had visited before. Very impressive landscapes and so mountainous!! I hadn´t expected that! All in all I had a very good time and enjoyed every single day.
So I thank you for everything, good luck for all the upcoming events and summer courses and hope to see you again sometime this year or the next at the latest!

Big hug for the whole Omilo family, take care,

Regina, Germany
Nafplion intensive course, 2014

Dear OMILO, kalispera !

I am trying to get acclimatized back home and also to reorder a bit the many things that I have brought back from Syros -physical one such as bookes, notes, CDs, but also emotional. I have some Greek friends here in Lausanne, so I really hope to be able to organize a Greek dance section I really thank you again for the nice organization and for all the activities that we had at our disposal once in Syros, not even mentioning the wonderful atmosphere and amazing teachers. It was a great experience to meet different nice people.
I wish you a good stay in Athens.

Because we left the course at Andros after the first week, we didn’t have
the opportunity to let you know our thoughts.
First of all, we’re (still) very satisfied. Not only because of the
subjects/themes of the course but also the (different) way of teaching by Konstantinos and Marina. Great job! The funny thing was that we were never too tired after the lessons and still had energy to do our homework!
We’re thinking about doing such a course next year at Syros and then the
full 2 weeks. The extra’s, like the history of greek music and the greek dancing, are nice, and makes it easier to get to know the other students better.

eimai sto grafio mou kai pali kai elpiso oti echete poles mathites sti Syro.
I forgot to give you the Feedback-Sheet – so I will tell you now: I just participated for one week but I it helped me a lot. I didn´t study for one year and the course gave me new motivation and I realised in Athens with my familiy, that I could express myself much better and I understood much more than the week before the course.
Also the teachers were great as usual: Konstantinos kept us talking (I think this is the most important thing) and his lessons were extremely helpful for my capabilities to speak. In addition to that we had a lot of fun. Also Terpsi gave us a lot of input – I am still fighting with the amount of words – so I am prepared for the next weeks. As she is a young teacher, I was surprised how professional she organised her lessons. She realised when the lessons were too difficult for us and she adjusted the exercise and the “speed” of the lesson – when it was too easy, she brought us to our limits. The standard was always very high, the lessons very concentrated.
Accomodation was great as well. Thank you for the great time,

greetings from Germany,

Volker, Germany
Syros Intensive course, August 2012

Efcharisto poli!

I really enjoyed the course on Syros. Even if when I came I was really burned out from too much work and didn’t do well on the first test, I feel I made a lot of progress because of your professional teaching techniques! I travelled on to Naxos as usual and my friends were impressed how much more I could communicate in Greek! Next year I will write this thank you note in Greek, but right now I just want to tell you how happy I am!
Kalo mina kai kalo diakopes!

Gail, Sweden
Syros Intensive course, 2011

Dear Dimitri, dear Konstantinos,

Thank you for your patience and your good humour. I enjoyed your teaching methods a lot. It is not always easy to encourage people to talk, but you are both very good at that, too.
One can also feel that you, together with Dora and Marina and Maya, are a fine team. You like each other and this creates a good and relaxed atmosphere.
Thank you – everybody – for the walks, the theatre, the dances and the songs!
See you again next year! Same time, same place….an ola pane kala!

yours,

Gabriele, Austria
Intensive course, 2011

Dear Omilo team,

I just wanted to send you a quick message to let you know how satisfied I am after having participated in the course in Nafplio. Everything went wonderfully, totally in line with my expectations (and even beyond them). I only regret I could not stay for a second week.
The normal lessons were very good and I found them extremely useful. I really enjoyed them and they helped a lot to improve my skills in Greek (specially listening and speaking) as well as my knowledge about Greece.
The private lessons as preparation for the Certificate exam were absolutely fantastic. We were totally focused on practicing the exam and the different types of exercises.
And then of course, the other activities were really excellent. I really appreciate the way in which the teachers were involved in them, making their presentations in Greek and English and coming along to the other activities and trying to use Greek as much as possible, even with people in more basic levels.
I found all the activities very useful from a learning point of view (I don’t recall having ever spoken so much Greek for such a long time and also from a social point of view, as the whole Omilo team were extremely pleasant and friendly.
I don’t think I have ever found such a perfect combination of quality in teaching, relevance and usefulness of the cultural and social activities and such a friendly and relaxing environment. I have never seen anything like the “Omilo experience” before in any other language courses I have attended (Greek or otherwise).
I am looking forward to having a chance in the future to attend another course at Omilo.

All the best,

Daniel, Spain
Nafplion Intensive course, 2011

Dear Maya and Dimitris,

Just back from your lovely course on Syros. I enjoyed it so much and want to come back next year. I’m babbling Greek at anyone who will listen – thank you so much for realising how much I needed the spoken language after so much grammar. I prefer the grammar, actually. It’s so much easier than talking. Yet you understood how much our class needed the practice in speaking. Thank you for your insistence on the most difficult part of language learning – to pull thoughts out of our heads and make us express them. My confidence in speaking to people in Athens afterwards had increased tenfold after the course. I was even talking politics to the taxi-driver who took us from Piraeus to Syntagma.

Your hospitality is warm and generous. And your teachers are magnificent.
What an amazing mixture of nationalities and people come to Omilo. I met Lilian and Erich next day in the new Acropolis Museum, Athens. We greeted each other like long lost friends. (We spoke, of course in Greek)

Omilo, thank you and the best of luck for your future.
Love,

Brenda, UK
Syros Intensive Course

Geia sas paidia!! Ti kanete??

Just few lines to give you few news of mine… I got my official greek certificate!! Yes! well, it’s the first level, but I past it with “LIAN KALOS”…it was a big satisfaction and now I’m looking forward to do the next level;-) Then ..I joined a very special forum of Italian people who are crazy for Greece ..like meeee.. And of course I spoke about “la mia bellissima esperienza con Omilo”..my beautifull experience with Omilò..so probabily next year some more italians will join your school;-) Well, I hope everyone is fine there, I hope you enjoyed your summer and you re ready for the new season of lessons. I miss you very very much, looking forward to see you soon…

I look back fondly on the language course in Nafplio. Both instructors were top-notch and I could easily have stayed there for another month of more of the same. I have a very high regard for the program you put together and the high class work you all do. Thanks again. Please keep me on your mailing list. If my schedule permits next year, I’d love to come back.

William, USA
Nafplion Intensive Course

Kalispera, once again.

I am sure that I am not the only one feeling that way Your newsletters really are something special: they teach us Greek, give information about Greece and, besides, are entertaining! Regards,

Seppo, Finland

Kalimera,

Just to say thanks to you all for a super week’s lessons with ‘Omilo’ on Syros in September. You have a really excellent group of teachers, each and every one, and you have managed to get the right mix: excellent grammar teaching with fun and lots of talking. The ‘proof is in the pudding’ as we say in English and I was able to have a pleasant conversation with the taxi driver when I left for the airport.

Bye for now fellow teachers & see you again soon I hope.

Jane, UK
Syros Intensive Course

Γεια σας!

Ευχαριστώ για τη γράμμα και χαιρετήσματα από τη Φινλανδία! Πέρασα πολύ καλά στην Αθήνα στο κουρ σας και it probably gave me the incentive to travel again more in Greece. Thanks to your course I was more able to speak with people στα ελληνικά και I enjoyed it a lot. Hopefully I’ll have the chance to come to your courses in the near future.